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The stories near you

• WUFT News: Gainesville residents and city officials gather to strategize how to tackle affordable housing issues in the city. "'Gainesville, we have a problem. And it’s the lack of affordable housing,' said Corey Harris, the city’s new senior housing strategist. Those housing problems that Harris mentioned are a growing difficulty within Gainesville that has directly impacted some of the city’s long-time residents. Before a crowd of about 70 people, Harris presented numerous graphics that showcased troubling statistics of the disparity between renters and their median income."

• WCJB: Gov. DeSantis signs record budget but includes several vetoes affecting North Central Florida. "Governor DeSantis signed a record $109 billion budget today, but also vetoed more than $3 billion in spending that hits North Central Florida particularly hard. The biggest loser was the University of Florida, losing $30 dollars for a new music building."

• WUFT News: Floridians looking for a way out under record-high fuel prices. "According to AAA, the state average price for gasoline reached a record high of $4.71 per gallon on Thursday. The price per gallon has increased by over 60% compared to the same time last year."

• Gainesville Sun ($): Was Alachua County Public Schools overcharged for textbooks? Here's what we know. "The Alachua County school district may have been overcharged for hundreds of textbooks last year compared to what other larger districts paid, according to a whistleblower who alerted state officials in March. The district had purchased approximately 4,000 English language arts textbooks for three schools during the 2020-21 school year, costing taxpayers approximately $570,433.90. Some larger districts, however, such as Miami-Dade, appeared to have been offered a reduced rate for each book, saving tens of thousands of dollars in the process."

• The Alligator: UF professor sues university after losing Fall semester classes. "A tenured UF professor is suing four faculty members, including President Kent Fuchs, for a five-day suspension without pay and for being stripped of his Fall 2021 classes."

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Around the state

• Politico: 'Just the way it goes': DeSantis axes $3B from Legislature's budget in front of Republican leaders. "GOP leadership from the state House and Senate stood at DeSantis’ side during a news conference in The Villages as he announced the record veto list. At times during the hourlong press conference, the governor directly poked fun at them as they laughed and clapped, a continuation of the Legislature’s fealty to a governor who has run roughshod over them as his reputation as a national Republican rock star and potential 2024 presidential candidate has grown."

• Florida Storms: Tropical Storm Watch issued for Central and South Florida ahead of system. "A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect over the Florida Keys and the peninsula from I-4 south valid through at least the start of the weekend."

• New York Times ($): Redistricting Nationwide Nears Finale With Florida Court Ruling. "The Florida Supreme Court refused on Thursday to step into a challenge to a new map of the state’s congressional districts that was approved by the Republican State Legislature. The ruling all but ensures that the November elections will be based on districts that a lower state court said diluted the voting power of Black residents, violating the State Constitution."

• WMFE-Orlando: Gender-affirming treatment will no longer be covered by Medicaid in Florida. "The Agency for Health Care Administration announced the change late Thursday. Agency Secretary Simone Marstiller says the decision follows a review of the available medical literature on the treatment by five experts."

• WUSF-Tampa: Brightline secures federal funds to help complete a plan for Tampa-to-Orlando high-speed rail. "Brightline received nearly $16 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation that will help spur an engineering study for the line between Tampa and Orlando."

• News Service of Florida: Expect no immediate improvements on Florida insurance market, even after special session changes, Citizens president says. "As the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. continues to balloon, officials this week praised steps that lawmakers took during a special legislative session to address the troubled property-insurance market. But they said it could be more than a year before many tangible changes are seen."

• WJCT-Jacksonville: Sheriff Mike Williams to retire instead of facing 'court battle.' "Jacksonville sheriff Mike Williams' is resigning, after violating the city's charter by moving to Nassau County last year. His retirement announcement came just a few hours before city attorneys were set to release a legally binding opinion on whether Williams had vacated the sheriff's role by moving out of Duval County."

• Spectrum News: Accused drunk driver in Skyway 10k crash deemed incompetent to stand trial. "The woman accused of driving drunk and crashing into a state trooper on the Skyway Bridge during a 10k run event has been deemed incompetent to stand trial."

• TCPalm ($): 'There will never be another Charles Walker': Fort Pierce Highwaymen artist dies at 77. "Walker, 77, was one of the original 26 Highwaymen — a group of Black artists from Fort Pierce and the surrounding area, influenced by the work of landscape artist A.E. 'Beanie' Backus, that painted vivid Florida landscape scenes in the late 1950s and early 1960s."

From NPR News

• Politics: President Biden calls for assault weapons ban and other measures to curb gun violence

• National: 2 women are killed at a church in Iowa, hours after a shooting near Milwaukee

• World: Ukraine agonizes over Russian culture and language in its social fabric

• World: Photos: Britain celebrates Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee

• Business: LeBron James is the first active NBA player to become a billionaire

About today's curator

I'm Ethan Magoc, a news editor at WUFT. Originally from Pennsylvania, I've found a home telling Florida stories. I’m part of a team searching each morning for local and state stories that are important to you; please send feedback about today's edition or ideas for stories we may have missed to emagoc@wuft.org.